What had the Death Bringer said? Dorthus must have a king.
Dorthus was always meant to be a place of rest for souls along their journey to the Otherworld. Who knew what sort of destruction Semphrys’s former soldiers would wreak if left to their own devices in a lawless wasteland?
Slowly, Kaden rose to his feet, his gaze settling on the obsidian crown with a look of disdain.
Then he looked down at me, and the storm in his eyes seemed to quiet. He held out a hand, and I took it, his heated expression stealing the air from my lungs.
“Tomorrow,” he said. “Tomorrow, we can rally the Drathens and discuss what will become of Dorthus. For tonight, I am a free male.”
Chapter
Thirty-Four
LYRA
The sky was a velvety blanket of stars by the time we reached the safe house on the outskirts of Bijult. The cold, salty air had seeped through my leathers after our flight across the Drathen Sea, and yet hope warmed my insides.
The Dark King was gone, as was the sire bond that had kept Kaden tied to his father. The innumerable souls that had been tethered to Semphrys were free, and we hoped that Anvalyn would recover now that the demon king was no longer siphoning the source of its magic.
True, Dorthus was now without a ruler, and Alfrigg’s troops were likely still sweeping across the continent. But as Kaden landed in front of the safe house tucked into the jutting white stones at the base of the Oranthan Mountains, a sense of peace settled in my soul.
A light snow had begun to fall, dusting the sharp rooflines that dotted the mountainside. Adriel and Sorsha landed behind us, and I flashed Kaden a soft smile before tugging my hand out of his grip. His gaze flicked toward hissister, and he nodded before magicking away his wings and continuing up the creaking wooden stairs.
I hung back to wait for the princess, who seemed to be looking anywhere but at Adriel. A single question still nagged at me, and there was only one person who could answer it.
Sorsha’s movements were stiff as she walked the path that led to the safe house. Her wings sagged with fatigue, her eyes were red and puffy, and though she’d scrubbed the blood from her face, her braid was still caked in the stuff.
“How are you doing?” I asked once Adriel reached the steps and followed Kaden inside. Dozens of Drathens had fallen during the battle — males she’d lived among and trained with for years.
Sorsha cracked a watery smile. “I’m all right. My heart hurts for everyone we lost today, but the Drathens will stand with us against Alfrigg.” She yawned, and for the first time, I noticed the dark circles that lined her eyes. “Despite everything, the realm feels lighter with Semphrys gone.”
“It does,” I agreed.
“Still, I don’t know what my brother is going to do. Dorthus must always have a king, and Kaden . . .” She sighed. “He shouldn’t have to give up his dream of ruling Anvalyn.”
“What about Semphrys’s idea to unite the realm under one crown?”
Never mind that the Drathen army had followedher— not Kaden — to Dorthus.
The princess shook her head. “The people of Anvalyn would never accept the king of Dorthus as their ruler. And I can’t imagine the demons would be thrilled about a fae monarch, even if he is Semphrys’s son.”
My body sagged. There didn’t seem to be any way around it. Kaden would have to take his father’s throne. “Can I ask you something?”
Sorsha raised a brow. “Of course.”
“How did you know that Xadorsch was impersonating Adriel? I figured they captured him when Semphrys’s demons attacked us at the Great Oak. That was the only time he was out of our sight. But Xadorsch was using the apokropos stone to conceal his true powers. How did you know it was him?”
Sorsha’s eyes widened, and then she brushed past me and darted inside. The wooden door snicked shut, and I stared at the spot where she’d disappeared, stunned that the princess had fled to avoid my question. I didn’t think I’d ever seen her back down from anything.
But then the door opened again, and Sorsha reappeared with a bottle of wine under her arm. An amused grin tugged at my lips as she plunged the tip of her dagger into the cork, twisting until it popped free. She took a hearty swig of the wine and wiped her mouth with a grimace before passing the bottle to me.
“It was when I kissed him,” she confessed. “On the tower in the north wing.”
I raised my eyebrows. I’dseenthat kiss. A shudder rippled down my spine at the realization that she’d been kissing the demon courtier instead of the royal guard.
Oddly, the real Adriel probably had no idea it had ever happened, thanks to Xadorsch.
“You knew from one kiss that it wasn’t him?” I asked, unable to keep the amusement out of my voice.
